India

VISAKHAPATNAM, August 12, 2012: The Revolutionary Democratic Front (RDF) president condemned the proposed ban on his organization under the AP Public Security Act. The Director General of Police has already recommended that the ban on CPI Maoists and other mass organizations including RDF be extended for one more year, the organization claimed.

The RDF central committee's newly elected president Varavara Rao and secretary Raj Kishore alleged that the state wing of RDF has not physically taken its shape except only two members as its president and secretary. Varavara Rao said the state wing was formed three months ago and that it has organised only two press conferences and one round table meeting on the Basaguda encounter in Chattisgarh, in which 20 innocent tribals were killed by the CRPF, and released two booklets so far.

According to the leaders, the activities of RDF, which was formed in 2005 at Delhi, are transparent and on democratic lines. When the Supreme Court has stated that having ideology or liking the Maoists ideology was not a crime, why is the state police influencing the government to impose ban on RDF, he asked. He asked whether it is crime of the RDF to raise its voice against the fake encounter of Basaguda.